Politics
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez backs call for Biden to consider abortion clinics on federal land
Supreme Court decision effectively returns abortion law to states, with those led by Republicans expected to ban, further limit procedure
June 27, 2022 7:46am
Updated: June 27, 2022 9:41am
Democrat Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has backed a call by the her party's progressive wing, of which she is a member, to ask President Biden to consider opening abortion clinics on federal land, following the Supreme Court ruling days earlier that ended women's constitutional right to seek an abortion in every U.S. state.
"We have many ideas," the New York congresswoman said Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press.
"We have some ideas coming from Senator Warren's signed letter along with 25 other Democratic senators asking President Biden to explore opening health care clinics on federal lands in red states in order to help people access the health care and abortion. Services that they need."
Moments after the Supreme Court of Friday ruled on a Mississippi abortion law that struck down the court's decades-old decision on Roe v. Wade that gave women the constitutional right for an abortion, Massachusetts Democrat Sen. Elizabeth Warren announced her idea about using federal land.
She more specifically said Biden and fellow congressional Democrats should "explore just how much we can start using federal lands as a way to protect people who need access to abortions in all the states that either have banned abortions or are clearly on the threshold of doing so."
The Biden administration, in particular, should examine whether abortions could be offered on federal land even within states that have banned the procedure, according to the Boston Globe.
The Supreme Court decision effectively returns abortion law to the states to decide, with those led by Republicans expected to ban or but more limitations on being eligible for the procedure.